Concept in Definition ABC

In its various formats the book It is one of the elements that has changed the history of humanity. Before their appearance, words only had an oral dimension and when the first alphabets were invented, it was already possible to translate words into writing. People who knew the technique of writing it was the scribes.

From Ancient Egypt to the Middle Ages

Ancient Egyptian society had a high level of complexity. The scribe was a professional who served the pharaoh and who carried out various activities related to writing: he transcribed the orders of the priests and heads of state, recorded information on commercial activities, carried a record of the offerings, wrote funeral texts, etc.

Those who carried out these tasks were part of the social elite and to access this knowledge a long process of learning.

His work team It consisted of a palette in which there were two holes for the red and black pigment, a brush holder made of reed and a reed brush (in its work bag the scribe also carried stones that were used to crush pigments and a bowl of water where you could wet the Brush).

In the Greek and Roman world, the scribe was in charge of taking notes that the leaders dictated to him and for this reason the Romans called him notarius

They wrote on tablets of wood and these were later rewritten on papyrus scrolls. Both Greeks and Romans wrote using a slender-tipped calamus (calamus started out being plant-based but eventually were made of bronze).

During the long Middle Ages in Europe Christian monasteries were the centers of learning. The scribes were monks who were dedicated to copying and illustrating the manuscripts. Their activity was carried out in the scriptorium of the monasteries. They were able to copy works written in various languages, usually Latin, Greek, and Hebrew.

They were familiar with writing techniques and in their work it was very important that the lines were straight and the letters were fully legible. They carried out a meticulous activity and usually wrote three or four pages in a workday.

This activity became specialized over time and was maintained until the appearance of the printing press in the 15th century.

Technological advances cause social changes in an almost immediate way. Thus, before the invention of the printing press, everything that was written and drawn was done by hand and with the emergence of the printing press, this activity ceased to make sense.

The first printing presses were gadgets in which metal letters were moved to create new words. With the appearance of these machines, the manual activity of the scribe lost its original meaning.

Fotolia photos: aen_seidhe / xunantunich